


Minutes

by myaekingheart



Series: The Scarecrow and the Bell [16]
Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Hugs, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Tumblr Prompt, Waiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-18 22:35:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29989857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myaekingheart/pseuds/myaekingheart
Summary: Prompt: Write about your oc waiting for something. Is it important? Are they worried? Do they have a method of keeping track of time, or are the minutes dragging by with no way to count them? (from random-writing-prompts-goblin on Tumblr)Rei anxiously awaits the return of her fiance, Kakashi, from a mission with his team.[Standalone companion piece to The Scarecrow and The Bell]
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Natsuki Rei, Hatake Kakashi/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Scarecrow and the Bell [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1913203
Kudos: 2





	Minutes

Rei paced back and forth in front of the village gates. The sun sat directly overhead—it had to be only a few minutes after noon. She pursed her lips, crossed and uncrossed her arms. _Where were they?_

She had made sure to arrive extra early on the off chance that they would be home much sooner than expected. And now here they were, running late. Rei grumbled under her breath, spun the ring around her left ring finger. _Just like him_ , she thought to herself. Kakashi was always late.

Normally, she was completely unaffected by his job. After all, she knew full well what being a shinobi entailed. Her job was arguably even more dangerous than his was. But her job rarely had her leaving the village. Konoha was safe, it was familiar. Within the comfort of her own hometown, she felt far more confident apprehending an intruder. Out there, there was nothing. You were on your own. You had your teammates, of course, but no other advantages. The enemy could slaughter you in five seconds flat.

But Kakashi was different. He was strong, fast, intelligent. He was renowned throughout the five great nations. That would mean he was undefeatable, wouldn’t it?

She remembered the day he was taken out by Itachi, the weight of the Tsukuyomi’s torture rendering him unconscious. He stayed that way for weeks. Realistically, Rei knew that Kakashi was not flawless but this…this was something else. She never again wanted to see him incapacitated like that. She never again wanted to see his life hanging by a thread.

She trusted him, of course. She had faith in his abilities. She had faith that even if something had happened to him, god forbid, that he would be strong enough to pull through. The Will of Fire, they called it. An innate hunger to keep moving forward, to do everything that you can for your village and your family. And now they really were family. They would be _a family._

Rei’s stomach stirred and she tried to will the thoughts away. He was going to come home. Conscious, alive, unaffected. He would be fine. She had to keep telling herself that he would be fine.

“God, can you fucking relax?” Sekkachi finally snapped, watching Rei from the sidelines. “You’re making me dizzy with all of this back and forth.” She popped a small blue capsule into her mouth, took a barbaric swig of her water. Evidently, Rei was giving her indigestion.

“Not until Kakashi gets home” Rei replied. “What if something happened? What if he never comes back?”

Sekkachi groaned and tilted her head back towards the sun. “Has he ever not come back before?” she asked. Rei opened her mouth to speak, but Sekkachi interrupted. “Regardless of what condition he came back _in_ , he’s never not come back at all. Maybe they hit some traffic, or maybe they got tied up. Either way, have more faith in your fiancé, Rei. The man knows what he’s doing. He’s not in a million different bingo books for nothing.”

Rei grimaced. She couldn’t say whether Sekkachi’s words made things better or worse. Huffing, she resolved to just leave it alone. To return to her frantic pacing, to the incessant spinning of the ring on her finger, to the overbearing thoughts and _what if, what if, what if._

And then she heard it: that godawful sound. Naruto’s voice. Rei’s head snapped up and from over the shallow hill, at the end of the pathway, she saw them. Her heart leapt into her throat. She wanted to race forward, to wrap her arms tightly around her fiancé, hug him, kiss him, confirm to herself that he was really here and alive and okay. She wanted to meet him but she felt herself suddenly paralyzed. She willed her legs to move but it was to no avail. She opened her mouth, and no sound came out. Her hands trembled at her sides. Her stomach flipped.

Sekkachi strode forward, as nonchalant as ever. “Well, what are you waiting for?” she asked. Then, with a light shove to her back, said “Go on, go to him.” And that shove, tiny as it was, somehow provided Rei just enough inertia to send her forward.

She started slowly, her steps heavy and methodical, before her adrenaline began to push her ever further, ever faster. By the time she passed under the gates themselves, she was near a full-blown sprint. The entire time, Rei never took her eyes off of Kakashi. She studied his unruly hair; his dark, tired eyes; his trademark masked smile and the little wave he gave in greeting as he saw her race nearer. And then they collided, Rei leaping into his arms and holding him tight and burying her face in the crook of his neck.

Kakashi chuckled. “Well, hello to you, too” he replied, voice low and intimate, as if they were the only people left in the world.

Rei grinned against his chest, hearing his comforting heartbeat pound in her ears. He was really here. He was really fine. He was _alive_.

She squeezed him tight before slowly looking up at him. Her cheeks burned bright red and a little incredulous laugh broke past her lips. She reached up to cup his face in her hands, pull him closer to her eye level, press her forehead against his. The cold glint of his forehead protector against her skin filled with a cool excitement similar to jumping into the pool on a hot summer day. A happy shiver ran down her spine. “I’ve missed you” she whispered.

Kakashi wrapped his arms around her in response, tugging his mask down discretely so as to plant a quick kiss on her lips. Smiling back, he replied, “I’ve missed you, too.”


End file.
